Tri-Cities officials will celebrate the launch of the new Manhattan Project National Historic Park this Thursday at the Visit Tri-Cities’ tourism showcase and annual meeting from 3:30- 6:30 p.m. at the Three Rivers Convention Center in Kennewick. The federal signing ceremony for the new park will take place Tuesday in Washington, D.C.

The Manhattan Project National Historical Park will be part of a small percentage of national parks focusing on science and technology, the Tri-City Herald reports.

Attendance for the Kennewick event is limited to meet fire codes, making an advance RSVP required to attend. Call 509-735-8486 or email info@visittricities.com with questions and to RSVP.

I know there are funding issues and administration issues and legislative issues and union issues... all the "yeah buts" that people stake their positions on so vehemently. Here's my "yeah but" -- I wish we could channel that passion differently, I wish the "opposed" people could have the experience I had today... to see a child's eyes light up and watch her confidence emerge. It was one of those soft, seminal moments in my life. In that moment, I knew this child's life, her trajectory, could completely change. Sometimes, the biggest changes start small -- one child at a time, one school at a time. We can figure this out, people.

Hilliard's Beer is gaining popularity in Sweden, where the Seattle-based brewery planned to expand sales this year. It has also received interest from distributors in Toronto and London.

Those opportunities are now on hold since Congress failed to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank last summer.

Elected leaders must end the ideological battle over Ex-Im and revive this vital tool for U.S. companies to grow exports overseas.

Hilliard's Beer is one of hundreds of exporters that used Ex-Im to secure loan guarantees and credit insurance for international sales. The shutdown has resulted in more than $9 billion worth of deals lost, said U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.

A lot more is at stake -- last year the bank completed $27.4 billion in transactions and supported 164,000 U.S. jobs.